Michael Bernard Bell, a 54-year-old man and five-time convicted murderer, was executed in Florida on Tuesday, July 15. In a disturbing turn of events, Bell decided to use his final words to thank his executioner.
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As reported by the New York Post, citing prison officials, the convicted murderer woke up at 6:30 a.m. at the Florida State Prison. His last meal, breakfast, consisted of an omelet, bacon, home fries, and some orange juice.
Before facing his execution, Bell met with a spiritual adviser. Then, as he lay waiting for the lethal injection, the team warden asked if he had any final words. He then used them to thank his executioner.
“Thank you for not letting me spend the rest of my life in prison,” Bell reportedly said.
As the lethal injection drugs flowed through his body, Bell slowly began to relax. Two minutes after receiving the lethal dose, he closed his eyes and stopped moving, as per ABC11. He was pronounced dead at 6:25 p.m., 10 minutes after he became unresponsive.
Michael Bernard Bell, Convicted Murderer
Michael Bernard Bell was sentenced to death in 1995 for the 1993 murders of Jimmy West and Ternecka Smith.
Back in December 1993, Bell spotted a vehicle that was previously owned by a man who had killed his brother. Alongside two other friends, he used an AK-47 to shoot and kill the who he believed was the man responsible for his brother’s death.
Instead, Bell shot West and Smith, as well as a nearby crowd, and fled the scene. West died at the scene, and Smith succumbed to her injuries on the way to a local hospital.
Bell was arrested in 1994 and convicted in 1995.
In addition to the two aforementioned killings, Bell was also convicted of three additional murders.
Back in 1989, he fatally shot a woman and her toddler son. Then, four months before the December 1993 shooting, he killed his mother’s boyfriend.
As per The Post, Bell’s execution is the 26th in the United States as of 2025. This exceeded 2024’s total of 24.
Additionally, Bell is the eight person to be executed in the State of Florida. Edward J. Zakrzewski II will become the ninth on July 31, after killing his family with a machete in 1996.